R&B is the one thing that has influenced every kind of music. Every artist that there is, from those that are sung the most to Adele - you know, she was so influenced by so many R&B artists and soul music - it's clear in her writing that that's where it comes from.
I've never had a very quiet voice. I tried in choir to make it smaller, and it just didn't work out. And I listened to a lot of soul music when I was growing up on my own accord. But I was mostly into Mama Cass and Gladys Knight, and they all had big voices too; just different than mine.
On my block, we grew up like family. Summer times, man, psshh, we in the back in the alley or in the front on the block. Somebody has some music playing, and nine times out of ten, it's soul music. We got whatever we drinking that day, we got some food, we probably even grilling. It's just a good time.
I have a wide range of influences - I mean, first of all, I am a big, big fan of old soul music. Then, there's people like Donny Hathaway, Elton John... a diverse array of music.
I got into the soul music, but I wanted to rock. I was a rocker.
Charles and I are from Augusta, Ga. - so we come from James Brown territory, soul music and Motown. And Charles has always had a lot of Southern rock in there as well.
For a long time, soul music was maybe one of my favorite kinds of music.
Soul music as we've always known it hasn't changed. There are different players now with different attitudes, but there is nothing new being done musically.
The '70s and '80s were just the period during which the best soul music was created and the best records were done.
I was introduced to soul music at a very young age - my mom was a soul singer.
